Prince Protection Program
by Neko Neko Rachie
Summary: AU- Prince Atem has been "extracted" from his country after the malicious Bakura attempted assassination. He is now in hiding, staying with the Motos, and learning all there is to learn about being an American Teenager. He's just not very good at it. Yami/Yugi friendship
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

He stood before the mirror, looking at himself. Butterflies of nervousness fluttered in his stomach.

"I will do you proud, father." He whispered, hoping he was heard.

"Your Majesty?"

Mahad stood in the doorway.

"It is time."

Atem nodded curtly, following his childhood friend and Head Magician through the doorway.

They stood, waiting for the word, Atem taking a breath to calm himself.

"Hey." Mahad said, "You'll do great."

The music began, Atem giving one last nod to Mahad as Prince, going forth to become Pharaoh.

He stepped through the curtains.

_Chin up, smile on. You must be proud for your people._

His father had spoken those words to him not months before, and Atem would do just that.

He stopped at the foot of the dias, where Aknadan stood.

He nodded to Atem, Atem nodding back. Aknadan stepped to the side, allowing Atem to walk to the throne.

The crook and flail...

The last person to hold those had been his father.

He took a breath, and walked forward. He picked up the and flail, setting himself down in the chair.

Seto took his side, the Millennium Puzzle in his hands, the modern symbol of the Pharaoh, formally belonging to his father.

He slipped it around Atem's neck.

Atem began to raise the crook and flail, but before he could, screams rang out, and a knife lodged itself into the wall beside him.

"Protect the Pharaoh!" Came Seto's voice, he walked forward, but Atem saw no more as hands ushered him behind the cutains.

"You'll be okay, Your Highness."

Atem looked over at the unfamiliar voice, seeing an old man.

"I'm from the Prince Protection Program." He said, "I'll get you to safety."

Though he was no longer a prince, Atem did not point it out, grateful that someone had cared enough to get safety.

"AND WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING?"

A hand grabbed Atem by his cape, and he gasped, whirling around to face the attacker.

A young man, no older than Atem himself. His skin dark, hair white. He wore a black kilt, and a red trench coat. He had a thick scar going down the side of his face.

The PPP agent did none, knowing this man would chase him.

"Allow me to introduce myself." The white-haired man said, "My name is Bakura, and I have a simple wish: Revenge!"

"What is it that I have done to you?" Atem demanded.

"Not you, Your Highness." He said the title with utmost disrespect, "Your father!"

"My father did no-"

"YOUR FATHER WAS A MURDEROUS SCOUNDREL!"

"Your Highness," Said the PPP agent, "now."

Atem whirled around, following the man.

"I am Solomon Moto." He said, "I have no doubt that he'll follow us. Just stay with me."

"GET BACK HERE!"

He heard Bakura's feet flying up the stairs behind them.

Atem grit his teeth. His heartbeat pounded in his ears as he followed Agent Moto.

They broke out onto the roof, where a helicopter was situated.

"Come." Agent Moto said, "Now."

They clambered into it, Bakura's screams of rage following them.

The helicopter took off just as Bakura blasted the door open.

He ran right at them, but missed as they were much to high.

He glared at him, before turning, returning to the Palace.

Atem caught his breath.

"You'll be safe now." Agent Moto said, "You're in good hands."

Atem's hand went to the Millennium Puzzle.

"I know." He said, a tear tracing it's way down his face as he watched the sands of Egypt fly behind them much to fast.

…

The helicopter settled itself down on an island, seemingly empty.

Agent Moto came around, helping Atem down.

"Thank you." He said.

"You're welcome."

Agent Moto led the Pharaoh down a path, concealed from both the front and above, though it was quite well-worn when you walked in.

They walked in silence, giving Atem time to think.

_YOUR FATHER WAS A MURDEROUS SCOUNDREL_

That was not true.

His father had been kind, always putting others before himself, and ruling as a king should- proudly, and kind.

But... Bakura definitely had something to be mad about...

What was it?

His thoughts were cut off as Agent Moto led him into a large...

Oh sweet Ra, what was it called?

Elevator.

The walls seemed to be plain steel until they lit up, the face of a woman upon it.

"Good job, Agent Moto." She said, "Prince- I suppose Pharaoh, now- Atem. Welcome to the Prince Protection Program, or PPP. I assume you know what we are, what we do."

"I am vaguely aware." Atem said.

"Well, what we do is protecting those of Royal standing who need protecting. Your friend Mahad contacted us, saying that he had a feeling that an attack was possible, though he did not know whom from."

"Well, I will give him my deepest regards for that."

"As you should. Now, step out of the elevator, and we will go on about the stages."

They turned around, the screen opening to reveal a very modern-looking place- white floors, smooth edges, glass, esca... Esca... Escalators. It was quite the sight to see.

The woman from the screen turned around, walking towards them.

She was tall, blond, pretty purple eyes.

"Director Valentine." She said, bowing slightly, "This way, Your Highness."

"A pleasure." Atem said, "You said something about... Stages?"

"Yes." Director Valentine said, "First is Stage One: Extraction. We've gotten you through that already." Atem cringed, remembering the chase, "Second, transition."

"Transition?" Atem asked, "Transition to what?"

"Stage three. Transformation."

"E-excuse me?"

"We must make you unrecognizable as a prince."

"Oh."

"Stage four, relocation. We've decided you'll be staying with Agent Moto in Domino City."

"And that is, where, exactly?"

"The American east coast." The Director said, "Now come with me, we've some redesigning to do."

...

"Is your grandpa home yet?" Joey asked as they walked home from school.

Yugi shook his head.

"Not yet, that I know of." He said, hands behind his head.

"What's he doing on that business trip anyways?" Tea asked.

"I don't know." Yugi said, shrugging, "He doesn't tell me."

That was a lie.

He knew his grandfather was a super-secret agent for a super-secret prince protecting program.

Yugi waved to his friends as they came up to the Game Shop.

He took his key out, but found it was unlocked.

His grandpa was home!

He opened the door, seeing Solomon Moto behind the couter.

"Hi!" Yugi said.

"Hello, Yugi." His grandfather said, "Take your bag up to your room. We'll talk after."

"Okay." Yugi said, grinning ear to ear as he took the first 4 stairs into the living part of the building, before taking the actual stairs upstairs.

He opened the door and threw his bag inside.

"Hello." Said the boy sitting on his bed.

"Hey."

Yugi began to leave, but stopped, turning around.

The boy that sat there looked remarkably like Yugi, with the same tri-coloured hair, though his skin was darker. He was in jeans and a leather muscle shirt, an upside-down pyramid pendant around his neck.

"I'm sorry," Yugi said, "but who are you?"

"I am Ate- Yami."

"Are you sure?" Yugi asked, "You don't sound too sure."

"I am sure."

"One more question. What are you doing in my room?"

He blinked in confusion.

"This is your room?" He asked, "Agent Moto has given me this room."

Yugi pressed his lips together.

"Did he?" He asked through gritted teeth, "If you'll excuse me."

He turned around, ready to leave, and the kid had the nerve to say,

"Yes, you are excused."

…

"Look, Grandpa." Yugi said, walking up to the counter, "When most grandfathers go on a super-secret mission to a foreign country, they usually bring their grandson back a t-shirt, not a person."

"Look, it was the Director's idea, okay?" Grandpa said, "I couldn't say no. Just learn to live with him, okay? And keep in mind, he's used to getting everything he wants, so, just give him a little talk about that, okay?"

"Fine. But I'm still mad at you."

Yugi came back up the stairs, finding "Yami" in the same spot he was before, looking a bit meek.

"Look," Yugi said, "I talked to my grandfather, or as you call him Agent Moto, and I'm going to tell you this now. This is not _your_ room. It's _ours_. We _share it_. And I know that that's probably a foreign concept to you, so let me explain: This half is mine." He gestured to the side that had his bed, "And that half is yours." He gestured to the other side, where he now noticed a second bed had been placed, "So, if you could get off my bed please?"

"Yes, my apologies." He said, nodding politely, moving to the other side of the room.

Yugi walked over and flopped down on his bed, grabbing his laptop.

He opened it up, drumming his fingers on it as he waited for it to boot up.

"Why are you staring at me?" He asked, turning on Yami.

"I'm sorry..." He said, "I simply do not know what to do..."

"Can you read English?" Yugi asked, sliding his computer down onto his bed, slipping his legs off.

"Yes." Yami replied.

"Perfect."

Yugi handed him the first _Harry Potter_ book.

"Believe me, you'll love it."

Yami nodded.

"Thank you." He said, sliding back against the wall to read.

He was going to have to get used to sharing a room.

But he'd do it.

…

**Ayyyy**

**I'm such a loser**

***hangs head in shame***

**Oh well.**

**So yes.**

**Enjoy this.**

**K thanks BAI**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

When Yugi awoke, he found Yami already awake, sitting on his bed, still reading that book.

He seemed quite into it- as one should be- and his eyes widened.

"QUIRREL!" He shouted.

"Yeah." Yugi said, causing him to jump, "You don't exactly expect that."

"Quite." He said.

"Yeah, but you're gonna have to put it down."

He looked up in surprise.

"Why?"

"We have to go to school. And I know that you probably had private tutors-"

"For your information, I only had one, and-"

"Yeah, don't care. This school has about 1, 200 kids, and with your cover being my cousin, along with being the new kid, you are at the bottom of the pyramid, my friend."

Yami blinked.

"Okay." Yugi said, as if speaking to a child, "Let me put it this way. The cool kids are up here,"- He put his hand up as far as it would go-, "and we're down here." He knelt, placing his hand on the floor, "I realize that you were probably loved and adored by all, but American teenagers are vicious animals that will tear you apart every chance they get, mostly in the form of having your head stuffed down a toilet."

"That is disgusting." Yami said.

"Quite." Yugi said, "I've had it happen a few times. Honestly, you get used to it."

"That's awful."

Yugi shrugged, beginning to change into his uniform.

"You might want to get dressed." Yugi said, looking at his new roommate in the mirror.

"Um, yes. Of course."

Once they were both dressed, Yugi turned around.

"Oh, come on!" He shouted, "You even look good in the damn uniform!"

It hugged his body in all the right places, his pendant looking great along with it.

"Erm... Thank you, I suppose..." He said meekly.

Yugi left the room, Yami awkwardly following.

...

He led him into the kitchen.

"Whatddaya want?" Yugi asked, "We've got, like, 10 minutes 'till Joey'll show up."

Yami thought it best not to question who "Joey" was.

"Well.. What is there?" He asked.

"Let's see..." Yugi opened the fridge, crouching slightly to look in, "Uuuuuh... There's some left-over pizza... Some... Eggs..."

"That will do."

Yugi grabbed them, and as he turned around, fumbled.

Yami's hand scooped them up, and Yugi stared at him.

"How..." He whispered, "How did you do that...?"

"You cannot?" He asked.

"No..." Yugi said, "Erm, doesn't matter."

In about 10 minutes, just as Yugi had said, they heard a voice call,

"Yugi! Let's go, man!"

"Coming!" Yugi called, shoving the last of his eggs in his mouth in a rather in-proper manner, "C'mon, man."

Yami followed him down to the shop, where a boy was standing conversing with Agent Moto.

He was tall and lanky, with blond hair that definitely had a lot of volume. His eyes were brown, and he looked quite at home.

"Sup, Yug." He said in a strange accent Yami couldn't place, his eyes then drifting over to the young Pharaoh, "Who's he?" He asked.

"That's my cousin, Yami." Yugi said, "He's here from Egypt for a little while."

Yami caught Yugi's eyes flicker towards his grandfather, who nodded.

"Okay, then." The blond said, "I'm Joey, Joey Wheeler, Yugi's best pal."

Yami nodded.

"It's a pleasure."

"Wow he's pretty polite." Joey said to Yugi.

"Tell me about it." Yugi said. Yami swore he caught him rolling his eyes, "Let's go."

"You three have a good day!" Agent Moto called, "No fights, okay?"

"We got it, Mr. Moto!" Joey called back, though not in a rude tone.

Joey turned around and walked backwards, beginning to talk to Yami.

"So what's Egypt like?" He asked.

"Well," Yami said, "for one thing, it is much warmer." He pulled his jacket around him closer, mostly because it _was_ quite cold, "For another... Well, I suppose here it's... Brighter."

"Whaddaya mean by that?" Joey asked.

"Your street lights. It's... Strange. Why make artificial light? It seems quite illogical to me. Candles and sunlight are what I grew up with."

"Well, candles are kinda a fire hazard." Joey said, "If they fall, your whole house could go up in flames."

"Perhaps..." Yami said.

"Hey, guys, wait up!"

Yami was nearly ran over by a someone in pink running past him.

When she stopped, he saw she was only a little taller than he, brown hair going to her shoulders, and blue eyes. She wore what he guessed was the girl's uniform- a pink jacket, the collar fanning out on her chest, a blue bow in the middle. The skirt was of the same colour, though, he had to note mentally, quite short.

"Sorry!" She said to him, then looked at him longer, "He looks a lot like you, Yugi." She said to the boy in question.

"That's because he's my cousin. He's here from Egypt for a little while."

"Oh!" She said, "Well, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"The pleasure is mine." Yami said.

"Ooh! He's polite! I'm Téa. Téa Gardner."

"Yami." He said.

Téa tilted her head.

"Doesn't that mean 'darkness' in Japanese?" She asked Yugi.

"Uh, yeah." He said, "How'd you know that?"

"Anime." She replied.

"Ani- I'm sorry, what?" Yami asked, entirely confused.

"It's Japanese animation." Téa replied, shrugging.

"Interesting..."

The group started to walk again, Yami falling behind a bit, letting the three friends talk.

He listened a little, but mostly payed attention to the scenery around him he hadn't gotten to see much of on the ride here. Cars were so fast, it was ridiculous.

The buildings were tall, some brick, some glass, surprisingly. He hadn't expected glass to be that strong, so he stopped and stared.

"You comin'?" Joey asked.

"Erm, yes."

He turned and walked up.

"I do apologize." He said nervously.

"Hey, it's alright, man."

"Hey, guys!"

Another walked up- tall and lanky, as Joey was, though his hair was remarkably different. It was short and brown, pointed out at the front.

"Who's this guy?" He asked, motioning to Yami.

"That's Yami." Yugi said, "My cousin from Egypt."

"Really?" The pointy-haired one said, "I didn't know you had cousins in Egypt."

"Neither did I until about 12 hours ago." Yugi grumbled, and they kept walking.

"So what's Egypt like?" The guy asked, "I'm Tristan, by the way. Tristan Taylor."

Yami nodded politely.

"It's a pleasure. And, uh, as I was telling Mr. Wheeler, it is noticeably warmer back home."

"Mistah Wheelah?" Joey asked, "I like it!"

Yami smiled.

"Well, you'll get used to it." Tristan said.

They walked along, the four friends chatting about what was seemingly nothing.

Yami payed no attention, not wanting to pry. He walked along with his hands in his pockets, which his uncle would have chastised him for.

He almost pulled them out, then remembered that Aknadden wasn't here. And even if he was, could he really tell him not to do it anymore.

It was mean, but he smiled slightly at the thought.

A long car roared by, a voice shouting,

"EAT IT, NERDS!"

Joey growled.

"Oh, dat damn Kaiba! I swear if he says one thing about you-" He looked back at Yami, "I will personally punch him in the face."

"Joey," Yugi sounded exasperated, "don't. You're already on probation. You know who'll be blamed if you do."

"Well then I'll yell at him!" Joey said.

"Kaiba?" Yami asked.

"He's this huge asshole." Joey said, "He runs this big gaming company, and because of that thinks he's above everyone else. He just makes me so mad!"

Yami nodded.

"Well, I should not be one to judge before I have met him." He said, "I find that to be quite obnoxious."

"Yeah, well Kaiba's even more obnoxious than that." Joey growled.

"I'll take your word for it..."

…

They turned onto the school property, Joey chattering loudly about "Duel Monsters", and Yugi seeming very into it.

But his eyes locked on someone across the courtyard.

"Seto." He whispered, starting to walk towards him.

"Yami!" Joey said, "Where ya goin'?"

Seto was leaning against the wall, in the uniform, reading.

He was always reading.

He walked up to him.

"Seto."

He looked up, seeming bored, before his eyes widened.

"My Pharaoh!" He said in a whisper, "What are you doing here?"

"I'm in hiding." Yami said, "Just call me Yami."

Seto nodded.

"Yes, of course."

"Hey!" Joey came up behind them, "Why're ya talkin' to Kaiba like you know him."

"Well," Seto said, pushing off from the wall, "if it isn't the Mutt and his gang of dweebs."

"_Seto_!" Yami scolded, "Is there really a need to talk to anyone like that?"

"Yeah, actua-"

Yami raised his eyebrows.

"Sorry..." He muttered.

"Never thought I'd hear that come outta your mouth, Kaiba." Joey snickered.

"Well, Wheeler, never thought I'd see you being in such good company as Yami here for once in your life."

"Both of you stop it now." Yami snapped.

Kaiba nervously took a step back, as his cousin rarely got angry, but when he did, it was for good reason and you should watch out.

Yami turned to Joey.

"You, stop starting something." -He turned to Seto-, "And you, don't be so rude. No need to be like your father."

Seto nodded.

"Quite true." He said.

"How do you even know each other?" Joey demanded.

"We're cousins." Yami said.

"Yug!" Joey wheeled around to Yugi, "Why didn't you tell us Kaiba's your cousin?" He demanded.

"I didn't know 'till, like, 5 seconds ago." He said, sounding surprised.

Seto looked over at Yami in confusion, who mouthed in Egyptian, _Cover._ Seto nodded.

"Neither did I." Seto said, "I guess I should have known, you two look surprisingly alike. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have more important things to do than stand around and talk to you, Wheeler."

Joey looked like he was ready to kill, but Yugi managed to calm him down.

"Let's just get to class." Yugi said, "We don't need any bodies."

"Excuse me?" Yami demanded, his internal alarm flaring.

"It's a figure of speech." Yugi said, sighing, "Just c'mon."

"Alright..."

…

**Ayyy**

**Sorry I took so long**

**I'm starting High School tomorrow and I'm pretty stressed out so PLEASE DON'T HATE ME**

**Hope you liked it.**

**K thanks. Love y'all BAI**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Yami followed Seto into the school, Yugi trailing behind.

"You'd need to pick up your schedule." The taller of the three said.

Yami looked at him, confused.

"You need a schedule to know what classes you go to." Yugi said, once more as if talking to a child.

"Don't talk to him like that." Seto snapped.

"You talk to Joey like that." Yugi snapped back.

"Yeah, but Wheeler's a dumba-"

"Kaiba, I'm sick of you treating him like garbage!" Yugi shouted, "You only do it because he has friends, and you don't!"

Seto stared at him for a second, looking as if he wanted to cry.

Well, of course he did.

The only real friend he'd ever had -family aside- was dead.

But, he stood up straight, and turned away.

"Come along, Yami. Please."

"You go ahead." Yami replied, "I'll be right there."

"Bu- Fine."

He walked around the corner, and Yami saw him lean against the wall.

"What in Ra's name do you think you're doing?" He growled at Yugi.

"It was rude... But so is he." Yugi said.

"You've no idea what he's gone through the past few weeks, Yugi. He's lost someone he loves dearly, and saying that was very out of line."

"Oh... I didn't know that..."

Yugi really did sound sorry.

"Alright. But perhaps you should assume that someone acts the way they do for a reason before you judge. As I said earlier, it's obnoxious."

He turned and walked down the hall, people looking at him in surprise.

Though he didn't notice it, the young Prince- now Pharaoh, technically- issued a sense of importance in himself as he walked. Eyes turned to him automatically. He did not question it, being used to it, but did think it was quite odd where no one had heard of him.

"Are you alright, Seto?" He asked, coming around the corner.

"No..." Seto said quietly.

"He didn't know."

"I realize that... But now it's playing over and over in my head and I just..."

He put his face in his hands.

Though he knew he'd be chastised for it at home, he hugged his cousin.

"Thank you..." Seto whispered.

"You're welcome."

There were several people staring at them.

Seto stood up straight.

"What the hell are you looking at?" He snarled at them, and they looked away, "And just so your overreacting teenage brains go overdrive, he's my _cousin_." He looked at Yami, "Schedule."

"Yes."

…

**NOTE: When anyone speaks in another language, I'll put the translation (Most courtesy of Google Translate, some French aside) in brackets, for all except Ancient Egyptian, because you can't really translate that. KK?**

Seto lead Yami to the French room.

"Oh, bonjour, Kaiba!" (Oh, Hello, Kaiba) The teacher said.

"Bonjour, Madame." (Hello, Ma'am *Directly, madame means "Mrs." but it is used to refer to a teacher or someone who is a woman that is not related to you*) Seto replied in that stony tone of his, "C'est mon cousin, Yami. Il est ici de l'Egypte. Troubles de la famille, pas grand-chose. Mais, disons simplement que je veux maintenant poignarder mon pere dans le visage." (This is my cousin, Yami. He's here from Egypt. Family troubles, no big deal. But let's just say that I want to stab my father in the face.)

"Seto!" Yami scolded, "You will do no such thing!"

"I might."

Yami's eyebrows shot up.

"Well, not in the face. But, like, in the stoma-"

Yami raised a hand, and Seto ceased to speak.

"Parler-vous français, Yami?" The teacher asked. (Do you speak French, Yami?)

"Oui." (Yes) He said, "Je parle ... français, de toute évidence, anglais, arabe, néerlandais anciens égyptiens, l'allemand, un peu de l'hébreu, le japonais, le chinois et le grec ancien." (I speak... French, obviously, English, Arabic, Ancient Egyptian, German, Dutch, a little bit of Hebrew, Japanese, Chinese and Ancient Greek.)

"Wow. Where'd ya learn all that?"

"My father, mostly."

Seto wheeled around.

"Hey, I taught you Japanese."

Yami smiled.

"Yes you did." He said, nodding.

"So you two are cousins, then?" She asked.

They nodded.

"Then I expect nothing but the best from you, Yami. If you and Kaiba grew up that close, then you'd best live up to him."

Yami's eyebrows shot up, and Seto started laughing.

"I'm just gonna leave." He said, "First period starts in two minutes."

"The business office is literally around the corner." The teacher said.

"Yeah, but I don't want to be late."

With that, he turned and walked down the hall.

"Oh!" The teacher said, "J'mappelle Madame Sosa." (I am Mrs. Sosa.)

"Bonjour." (Hello.)

"Asseyez-vous à côté de Téa, s'il vous plaît." (Sit beside Téa, please.)

"Bien sûr." (Of course.)

He walked over and sat beside Yugi's friend, who was staring at him as if he'd stepped out of a portal from another dimension.

He looked over at her.

"Um..." He twirled one of his long, sharp blonde bangs around his finger and asked, "Not to sound rude, but, uh... Why are you staring at me?"

"You speak _Ancient Egyptian_?" She demanded.

"Yes." He replied, "As does Seto. Our family has roots in the Ancient days, before the Romans took over." He chuckled, "My father always liked to joke about how we were descended from the Pharaohs."

He smiled sadly.

"'Liked to'?" Téa asked.

"Erm... Yes. I'm afraid he passed on a few weeks ago." He twirled the string that held the Puzzle around his neck nervously.

"Really? Is that why you're here?"

He nodded.

"Yes."

"I'm sorry." She put her hand on his arm.

"There is no reason for you to be." He replied, "His life was well-lived. It is the circle of life, I'm afraid."

"But.. Kaiba was talking about his dad. Is he-"

"Aknadden?" Yami asked, "He's still alive."

"Kaiba seems to hate him." Téa said.

Yami shifted in his chair.

"Aknadden has some- er- _issues_ over my father gaining the th-" He stopped himself, "Over gaining most of my grandparents' fortune. Though, Aknadden did get quite a lot. Seto would probably be rude about it and say he was a- and I quote- 'money-grabbing-family-abandoning-only-took-me-in-because-he-needed-someone-to-rant-to-about-his-brother-fucking-awful-father'. Pardon my language."

"Oh wow." Téa said, "That's some daddy issues right there."

Yami gave a nervous chuckle.

"Yes. Yes they are."

…

Meanwhile, Yugi tapped his pencil nervously.

He felt _so_ bad about what he'd said to Kaiba.

He hadn't known... He hadn't...

He wanted to apologize so badly, it might have been literally eating him up from the inside out.

He felt awful about how he'd been so rude to Yami. If he could be so kind and make friends with someone like Kaiba, who pushed everyone away, for reasons Yugi honestly couldn't say, then he had to be a wonderful person.

"Yug." Joey leaned over to whisper to him, "You okay?"

"Not really." He said, "I feel like such a douche."

"Kaiba probably deserved-"

"JOEY, JUST DON'T!"

He realized he'd said it way too loudly.

"Is there something you wish to share with us, Yugi?" The teacher asked.

"No." Yugi replied, "Not at all."

"Well, finish the argument outside, then." She said.

"That's not really necessary." Yugi said, turning to glare out the window.

The teacher sighed, and continued the lesson.

…

Once second period had ended and the lunch bell had rang, Yugi ran to find Kaiba. He found him leaning against a wall talking to Yami.

"Kaiba!"

Kaiba looked over and pulled his eyebrows together, probably surprised Yugi wanted to talk to him.

"Look," Yugi said when he got over there, "I'm sorry about what I said. It was pretty out of line." Kaiba looked surprised.

"Are you apologizing to me?" He asked.

"Erm.. Yeah."

"Well.. Thank you." He gave a slight smile, "Thanks a lot, actually."

"You're welcome. You know, you two are more than welcome to eat with us."

Kaiba looked skeptical.

"I'll keep Joey at bay. But you need to keep your comments to yourself. Otherwise both myself and Yami will smack you."

"Well.." Yami said, "I wouldn't smack him..."

Yugi's eyebrows shot up.

"Okay, perhaps I've _wanted to_ at times, but, uh..."

"It's fine." Kaiba said politely. Anyone who didn't know who Yami was probably would be surprised that Kaiba was nice to anyone.

"C'mon." Yugi said, leading him down the hall, "We were gonna go out for lunch. That Chinese place down the street."

"Sounds brilliant." Kaiba said.

Yami frowned.

"Chinese...?"

"Well, because America's so culture-rich, we usually have a lot of different ethnic foods around. Trust me, you'll love it."

For once, his voice held no sarcasm.

They met up with Yugi's friends outside the front doors.

Téa grinned at Yami, but Joey was mad.

"Why da hell'd you bring Kaiba along?"

Kaiba opened his mouth to retort, but Yami raised a hand, and he closed it, causing Joey to raise an eyebrow.

"You," He pointed to Kaiba, "keep your mouth shut, or, as Yugi suggested, I _will_ smack you. And you," He looked at Joey, "please don't be so rude. Seto needs to keep his mouth shut, but as do you. So both of you, argue once more and I'll send you," He looked at Kaiba, "as far away from me as possible. And you," He looked at Joey, "I'll merely ignore you."

"Wait." Joey said, "Why would you 'send Kaiba away' but just ignore me."

"I hold no authority over you." He said bluntly.

"Oooo-kay!"

Kaiba dragged his cousin to the other side of the courtyard, and the two of them had a very animated-looking discussion.

Their friends should be glad they couldn't hear.

…

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Seto demanded of him.

"What?" Yami asked, legitimately confused.

"You can't parade around your authority around here. Why? For one thing, people don't like it. For another, anyone in this school could be working for Bakura."

Yami had almost forgotten about Bakura.

"And you look nothing like a king, but throwing it around casually, like it's no big deal, especially around here, will make you obvious. I've kept Seto and Kaiba as two very separate people. I'd suggest you be very careful, and keep Yami and Atem the same."

He took a breath, having ranted the whole time with no breathers.

Yami looked down.

"I apologize." He said, "It was rash. But," He looked up at Seto, "what will we tell them the explanation is?"

Kaiba frowned.

He read a lot of books where characters had to make up a story about things that they couldn't tell others.

For example, in _Percy Jackson and the Olympians_ the main character, Percy, had often told his mortal friends- when he had them- that he'd met his long-time friend (and eventual girlfriend), Annabeth, at a summer camp on Long Island.

Not a lie.

But not the whole truth, either.

He quickly explained this to Yami, who nodded.

"I see." He said, "So... Perhaps we could tell them that I hold authority over you due to the fact that my father had authority over yours due to the whole 'older sibling' thing... And by default, I now have authority over you and Aknadden."

Kaiba nodded.

"Perfect."

…

"I apologize." Yami said as he and Kaiba returned, "Shall we?"

Yugi walked right up and started chatting with him, Tristan and Téa following, leaving Joey alone with Kaiba.

It wasn't that Joey _hated_ Kaiba, as he hated very few people, but Kaiba was just so arrogant, like he thought his money made him better.

But, ever since Yami showed up this morning, he'd _listened_ to him.

Which was surprising, because the only person Seto Kaiba listened to was himself.

But now, Joey learned that Yami had _authority over him_.

What kind of person would Seto Kaiba let have _authority_ over him?

"So..." Joey said, "Let's not fight for one day."

Kaiba nodded, surprisingly.

"I'd rather not upset him." He nodded towards Yami, "I don't like to. The poor guy's been through so much in the past few weeks. I just hope he hasn't heard all the accusations..."

Kaiba seemed to wander off.

"What accusations?" Joey asked.

"It's not your business." Kaiba spat, "All you need to know is that once Yami returns home safely, my father will be put to trial for-"

Kaiba suddenly shouted, but was silenced just as fast.

But he moved faster than Joey had ever seen him move, grabbing the hand over his mouth, flipping the person over his shoulder, then grabbing the front of his white clothes and slamming him into the wall.

But his anger faded to surprise as he said quietly,

"Father?"

…

**Oh shit son**

**Well, we all know Aknadden's bad news**

**Sorry I took so long**

**I had writer's block for _weeks_**

**It was awful**

**But yeah**

**Cliffhanger**

**I'm slowly turning into Rick Riordan**

**Just not that bad**

**No one's that bad**

_**No one**_

***fades into shadows, whispers***

**K thanks love y'all BAI**


End file.
